Saturday, December 11, 2010

Stay HIV Free - Always Use a Condom!

A graphic public service announcement on HIV/AIDS has been released by the New York City Department of Health. The ad features individuals with HIV suffering from not only HIV alone but other diseases that can accompany it due to higher risk.

HIV/AIDS has been spreading rapidly in the gay community and elsewhere, especially among those who are under 30 and were not around or old enough to witness the epidemic during the 1980's.



For a brochure on this campaign click here.

Be safe. Be smart. Be with a condom at all times.

4 comments:

libhom said...

Thanks for posting this!

Michael Faris said...

I'm quite surprised by the uncritical endorsement of this video, which relies on scare tactics and stigmatization. For some critical responses:

http://networkedblogs.com/bQe6l

http://www.lgbtqnation.com/2010/12/advocacy-groups-say-nyc-health-department-ad-demonizes-gay-men-hiv-patients/

for a discussion of the use of fear in sexual health education:

http://www.ght.org.uk/userfiles/file/Role-of-Fear-in-HIV-Prevention-MIC2010.pdf (pdf)

Queers United said...

I don't agree with GLAAD and others who are calling for a removal of the ad. Should we sugarcoat the issue? HIV/AIDS is a very serious illness and people need to be knowledgeable on the potential problems that could arise from infection. That being said people should in no way mistreat or stigmatize people over their status.

Michael Faris said...

"people should in no way mistreat or stigmatize people over their status."

But that is exactly what this video is doing. I don't think anyone is arguing for sugarcoating the issue. They are calling for effective and ethical advertising, and I don't believe this ad is ethical or effective. (Perhaps it is effective for people who already use condoms, but that's not going to do a lot)

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